Driving in Vanua Levu

I'm thinking of hiring a car for three or four days if I can get to Fiji in November. Is it recommended? What are the roads like? Any tips welcome. Cheers.

Road on the south coast from Nadi to Suva is good. North coast route was not always in the best shape a few yrs ago, but I haven't been on it in a while.

Thanks, Raro, but I was thinking more about the northern island - especially the roads around Savusavu/Labasa

I wonder if Vanua Levu is a destination for a driving holiday. The Savusavu to Labasa road is paved, in reasonable condition, and not too busy. But I'm not sure if it's worth renting a car for 4 days, as many of the other roads are of the dirt track variety. If there's rain then it will be even more problematic. I suppose it depends on what you plan on doing and where you want to go -- and the condition of the vehicle you rent .. maybe a 4WD (if available) will give you more flexibility.

On the other hand, even if you stayed on the Savusavu-Labasa road a car will save you some travel time, as the old buses really struggle to get up over the central island hills.

Perhaps the easiest thing to do is plot out an itinerary once there, get local info on the current state of the roads, and make a last-minute decision.

You're right, Oldpro, I'm over-planning again. Bad habit. Must contain myself until I get there. Cheers.

Just came across the following useful link, which helps answer my own question:

[http://babasiga.blogspot.com/2008/09/driving-in-fiji.html]

It's paved east of Savusavu for several miles. But I'd just go to SVU and take it from there, as suggested above.